The Annick LIVEbrary
Week #4

Skype Chat Transcript - November 8, 2007

Made You Look with Shari Graydon

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

WELCOME to the Annick LIVEbrary. Today we are chatting about concepts of "Tricks and Tactics of the Ad Trade" with Shari Graydon, media literacy activist and author of Made You Look: How Advertising Works and Why You Should Know. We'll be starting in about 10 minutes.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Hi, Resa. Are Azi and Meg with you today?

Resasaurus:

They are.  Everyone says hello!

Annick LIVEbrary-ChatKeeper:

Hi, Resa, Azi, and Meg :)

SERIES LIBRARIAN Gary Price:

How about something fun and useful from Ask.com? We are now offering character searching. We've started with some emoticons. So, if you type the Smiley into Ask you get an answer.
For example: http://www.ask.com/web?l=dir&o=ffx&q=%3A-%29.

Annick LIVEbrary-ChatKeeper:

OUR SERIES LIBRARIAN today is Gary Price, director of information technology for search engine ASK.com and the founder and editor of ResourceShelf.com. Teachers and librarians, you can make an appointment with Gary to see new developments in search technology by sending email to gary@resourceshelf.com. Thanks for helping out, Gary!

SERIES LIBRARIAN Gary Price:

My pleasure. Try this one: http://www.ask.com/web?l=dir&o=ffx&q=%3A-O.

SERIES LIBRARIAN Gary Price:

And speaking of weather and climate, you can enter a city name and month and a word like climate and get the info right at the top of the page. Let's try "New Orleans Climate May": http://www.ask.com/web?l=dir&o=ffx&q=+New+Orleans+Climate+May.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Hi, Resa, Azi, and Meg.  So glad to be chatting with you again!

Resasaurus:

Hi, Ms. Shari. :) We did the logo hunting exercise in reverse for a bit-- we tried to find something in our pantry that *didn't* have a label or logo.  Even produce has logos these days.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

That's funny, Resa -- A Reverse Freeze Frame!

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Even the no-name brands are now logo-ed in the sense that no name is symbolic of "I'm cheaper, buy me."

Resasaurus:

Azi worries that painting livestock can't be very healthy for them.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

No, that's for sure. I think painting the epidermal layer of any animal or human is probably not the healthiest choice!

Resasaurus:

Meg says advertisers attract kids with "cool stuff" and adults with "cheap stuff."

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Meg: Absolutely.  The big appeal made by advertisers to kids is "hip, cool, awesome."  For adults, some of the pitches are on a cost basis, but some appeal to adults who want to be seen to be wealthy and exclusive.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Resa, do you wear a diamond engagement ring?

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Is this the pop quiz?

Resasaurus:

No.  For years, I had a silver and gold band only and recently my husband got me a ring with one peridot and two blue topaz.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Resa: lovely.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

That's a good sign that your family is not as susceptible to advertising messages as most others. In 1947, DeBeers created a slogan for diamonds, "Diamonds Are Forever," equating the stone with everlasting love.  Now, most women who wear an engagement ring sport diamonds.  Credit the power of advertising.

Annick Brigitte:

Shari, is there any kind of advertising that you think is useful? And what's the difference between "good" advertising and "bad"?

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Advertising can be useful by making us aware of products or services that we wish to buy or are in need of buying.  For me, what defines bad advertising are messages that make claims that are not defensible, and ads that portray human beings in insulting or destructive ways.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

If advertising didn't work, companies wouldn't advertise. How come we are still so gullible?

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Because we're human.  Because we yearn to be popular and attractive and fit in.  We salivate at the sight of delicious looking food.  We respond to visual images and we hope that the promises offered are possible to realize.

Annick Brigitte:

In Quebec, it's against the law to advertise to children under 13. Do you think this is a good thing?

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Absolutely, I think it's a good thing.  I think more jurisdictions should follow suit.

Resasaurus:

Azi thinks that it's great that Quebec doesn't allow advertising to kids under 13.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

I'm going to start tossing quiz questions out, so look out!

LIVEbrary Quiz #1) Matching. Many people say advertising doesn't affect them. Which slogan goes with which company? Match the letter of the slogan to the number of the company.

A. Live in Your World. Play in Ours.
B. Mm, mm good. Mm, mm good.
C. Maybe she's born with it, maybe it's...
D. Just do it.
E. They're GRRRRRRRRREAT!

1. Kellogg's Frosted Flakes cereal.
2. Sony Playstation
3. Nike shoes
4. Maybelline cosmetics
5. Campbell's Soup

Resasaurus:

A. 2, B. 5, C. 4, D. 3, E. 1.

Resa, Meg, Azi -- you know your brand slogans!

Answers: A-2, B-5, C-4, D-3, E-1

Resasaurus:

The sad thing is the only thing we buy off that list is Playstation stuff and yet we still know them all.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

In science, they call that osmosis.  Advertising slogans and logos are the one quiz nobody has to study for, unfortunately!

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Azi, how do you think your life would be different if you hadn't been exposed to advertising?

Resasaurus:

Azi says there would be a lot of stuff that would be a lot harder to find out about, like new video game releases.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Would you buy fewer video games?  If so, what else would you do with your allowance?

Resasaurus:

Azi says that he would probably buy more books.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

I'm all for buying more books!  Did I mention I have two for sale?  *wink*

What kind of books do you like to read?

Resasaurus:

Azi says he likes to read Fantasy books the best.  

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Shari, it's not clear the age some ads are targeted to. How does Quebec decide if an ad is targeted at someone younger than 13?

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

You're right.  It's difficult to tell what age kids that ads are targeted to.  One of the ways they restrict advertising in Quebec is to prevent advertisers from advertising on shows targeted to kids under 13.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

So the advertising works on us, even though we know we're being manipulated, because we can't help it? That's kind of scary.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Media literacy helps us become more critically aware, but in order to completely resist manipulation, we have to remove ourselves from exposure to advertising.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Good point. Get out of the line of fire. But advertising is everywhere now!

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

The other thing I think is important is to encourage policies that restrict advertising in public spaces.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Meg, how do you feel about advertising on your favorite shows?

Resasaurus:

Meg says sometimes it's hard to tell where the cartoon ends and the commercial begins.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

I've noticed that! Advertisers are getting very sneaky about the kinds of commercials they produce for cartoon shows.

Resasaurus:

Meg says that she doesn't like having her show interrupted with advertising, but she sometimes sees stuff that she wants in those ads.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

A useful trick when watching TV ads is to turn off the sound and see whether or not the toys or games look exciting without the soundtrack.

Annick Brigitte:

We tend to automatically assume that advertising is "bad", but without it, how would people make  decisions about which product to purchase?

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

I rely more on my friends' recommendations than on advertising for products.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Resa, Azi, Meg -- have you ever looked at the social networking site, Facebook?

Resasaurus:

We haven't been much interested in Facebook yet.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Azi, the thing I hear from Facebook users is how much time they end up wasting -- which means a lot less time for reading books!

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

I asked about Facebook because they just announced a new service that tries to enlist people as "brand evangelists" or "fan-sumers" (instead of "consumers") and there has been a lot of reaction to the announcement.

Resasaurus:

Mom does her time wasting on LiveJournal instead, and there was a lot of negative reaction when they chose to have communities sponsored by corporations instead of by individual users.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

LiveJournal is involved in the Facebook deal that was announced yesterday. So you can expect to see more ads, and more of them coming from people who appear to be just neighbors ...

Resasaurus:

Companies already pay bloggers to review their products on their blogs so the LJ/Facebook thing isn't that much of a surprise.

You're watching a movie and the hero drinks Coke.  "Product placement" advertising hard at work.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

"American Idol" is becoming a big Coca-Cola promoter. The judges have Coke glasses and there's a big Coke machine in the lounge where the contestants hang out.  Product placements are designed to work on the osmosis principle and to override our critical attitude to traditional advertising.

Alicia Glavac:

"Idol" also has the Ford commercials each week, and the final 2 each get new...FORD cars!

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

A few years ago, a James Bond movie ("Die Another Day") had so many product placements that some people said it was more like a two-hour commercial than a movie.

Alicia Glavac:

Yeah, I think the product placement scene in "Wayne's World" is still the best.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

What were the products promoted in "Wayne's World"?

Annick Brigitte:

Shari, hypothetical situation:  if you walked into a drugstore looking for shampoo, and had never seen or heard advertising for any of them, what would you base your decision on? Would it be the packaging, the name, the price? In fact, all those things are advertising as well, aren't they?

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

I'm a major sniffer: I tend to select shampoo based on how it smells! I also read the ingredients to see if they have any parabens, which I avoid.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

I choose shampoo by smell, too. SMELL is a form of advertising, too. Was in a mall in Chicago yesterday. It was cold outside. It smelled like chocolate chip cookies inside.

Annick Brigitte:

That's interesting. Two of you choose shampoo by smell, yet I can't think of any shampoo commercials that use smell as a selling feature! Someone isn't on the ball out there in the world of advertising!

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Herbal Essence.  It used to promote itself on the basis of smell.

Alicia Glavac:

In "Wayne's World," they have a whole scene where Wayne and Garth  talk about "selling out" their show to a major network. Then they do blatant product placements for Pepsi, Reebok, Pizza Hut, Nuprin...

Alicia Glavac:

It was totally making fun of product placement

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

The "Wayne's World" send-up of product placement probably helped people become more aware and critical of product placement advertising.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

I noticed recently that Home Depot and Lowe's pipe in the sounds of songbirds in their garden centers.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Meg and Azi: Have you ever seen an ad that made a promise that you found completely unbelievable?

Resasaurus:

Meg's discussing niche markets with us in the background.  Why puppy dogs and art supplies aren't on TV so much.

Alicia Glavac:

Puppy dogs sell toilet paper...

Resasaurus:

LOL @ Alicia.

Alicia Glavac:

But I think bears, and kittens are closing in on the market...

Resasaurus:

True.  Meg wonders why they don't sell the actual puppy dogs on TV, or ads for dogs that could be adopted.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

LIVEbrary Quiz #2) Multiple choice. What does the word "logo" mean? Pick the best definition from the list below.
A. Crazy or insane.
B. Another name for the dance called "The Limbo."
C. A holy book, such as a Bible, Torah or Koran.
D. A symbol or design representing a company's brand.

Resasaurus:

Azi and Meg pick D but mom wants to pick A.

Alicia Glavac:

Yikes!

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

I think you're both right!

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Azi & Meg, you are correct, and Mom is at least half-right!

Answer: D. A symbol or design representing a company's brand.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Azi and Meg: Do you know why Kentucky Fried Chicken changed its name to KFC?

Alicia Glavac:

I'm scared of the answer to this next one...

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

You mean you're afraid they're no longer selling chicken?!

Resasaurus:

Azi thinks it's easier to say and he's pretty sure that that chicken doesn't really come from Kentucky.  Meg thinks it makes a better sign. She thinks "Kentucky Fried Chicken" is too long a sign to read while you're driving your car.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

I'm sure Azi's right, but the real reason is that a big PR agency advised Kentucky Fried Chicken to de-emphasize the word "fried" because it reminds people that the product is not good for them.

How do I know this? I used to work for the big PR company, but I've been trying to make up for it ever since. Meg, it's also true that "KFC" is shorter and snappier to read and remember.

Alicia Glavac:

At least it's not because it isn't actually chicken...

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

I think that rumor may have been started by Pamela Anderson!

Alicia Glavac:

If Pammy says it - it MUST be true!

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Shari, we're glad you switched teams!

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

I work for a PR firm, too, but there are ethical ways to bring your product to the attention of people; we like to think that's our style.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Ethical promotion is possible. It would be great to see more of it.

Annick Brigitte:

Shari, have there been any advertising campaigns recently that you've admired? That you feel have been responsible, ethical and informative?

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Good question!

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

I've liked a couple of FedEx TV campaigns in the last couple of years because they made me laugh and they focused on the reliability of the company's service.

Resasaurus:

We're fairly atypical at our house in that we're not at all brand conscious and in some cases we're anti-brand, but you see that we still know all this stuff, even with fairly limited media exposure.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Yes, the messages penetrate! In fact, they follow you from Cradle to Grave.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

That's one of the insidious things about advertising. Just like I know way too much about Britney Spears even though I've never actually heard her music or seen her on music television.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

LIVEbrary Quiz #3) Multiple choice. Which of the following is NOT an example of "cradle to grave marketing"?
A. Birthday clubs with free birthday rewards in exchange for registering your name, age, and contact information with a business or organization.
B. Warranty cards that make it sound like your rights are not activated unless you send in your registration (even though your rights are often protected by law whether you register or not).
C. A company that manufactures cribs and coffins.
D. Using a modern cartoon character to pitch breakfast cereal to kids on morning television programs and a "retro" cartoon character to pitch the same cereal to adults on evening programs.

Resasaurus:

Azi says C, Meg says A.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

For once, a split decision. Azi, you are correct:

Answer: C. A company that manufactures cribs and coffins.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Azi's right on this one, and the reason "A" is considered "cradle to grave" marketing is because it targets very young kids. There's a great quote that I came across when researching my book, by a marketing expert who said, "If you own this child at an early age, you can own this child for years to come."

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Advertisers have figured out that brand loyalty established at a young age is often carried through adulthood.  So if your mom buys Campbell's soup, when you grow up and you're buying your own soup, you're likely to buy Campbell's.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Resa, Azi, and Meg: What kind of soup do you buy?

Resasaurus:

Errrh.  We rarely buy soup unless you count ramen noodles.  Most other soup we make at home.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

I, too, make my own soup.  But one of the things I encourage kids to do is to compare the ingredients of canned soup in the grocery store because even though Campbell's might cost 30 or 40 cents more than the brands you've never seen advertised, the ingredients are exactly the same.  This is one of the ways to remind people that we, the consumers, actually pay for the cost of advertising.  We pay more for products that are heavily advertised.

Resasaurus:

Meg's love affair with canned chicken and stars soup faded when she realized that there are star shaped noodles you can buy to make your own chicken and stars.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

One of the big picture impacts of advertising is to make us forget that there are a lot of things we could make ourselves.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Advertising encourages us to think that the solution to any problem or want is to buy something.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Shari, I would love to hear your comment on this new trick I noticed. I got a catalog from office depot at work, and the cover had pictures of stuff I had bought from them before. I got a catalog the same day at home, and the pictures on the cover were completely different. I'm pretty sure they made that cover *just for me*!

Annick LIVEbrary-ChatKeeper:

Steve - wow, that's frightening!

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

That is frightening.  It's one of the reasons I avoid using loyalty programs, because they use those to track your purchases so they can target you more effectively.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Living in New Orleans, we've received a lot of hurricane rebuilding aid from companies such as Wal-Mart and Home Depot. While I realize they have good business reasons for donating, I still think it's an ethical, responsible way to spend the marketing budget, as opposed to silly ads.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

I agree.

Annick Brigitte:

I remember reading about a study that was done to link consumers' reactions to advertising with their decisions to purchase. It was fascinating. There didn't seem to be any connection between people liking an ad and buying the product advertised. In fact, in many cases, people would talk about a commercial that they really enjoyed and have no idea what the advertised product was!

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

It's true that liking an ad campaign doesn't necessarily translate into intent to purchase.

Annick Brigitte:

So the question is, what is it about certain ads that makes you actually go out and purchase the product? If we could analyse that, it would help us be that much savvier consumers rather than pawns of the advertisers.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

It's rare for an ad to work that simply. We're not exactly Pavlov's dogs. But the repetition of brand names means that if and when we are ready to buy a can of soup or new shampoo, when we go to the store and are faced with the many choices, we're more likely to reach for the one that's familiar.

Resasaurus:

Resa wants to know what you all think of the TruthOut ads.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Can you please explain? I'm not familiar with them.

Resasaurus:

They're some sort of anti-smoking campaign ad and they're very, I don't know, in your face.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

It's hard to make effective anti-smoking campaigns because when you use health scares, kids tend to believe that they won't ever succumb to cancer or emphysema.

Annick LIVEbrary-ChatKeeper:

That's a good question - the difference between ads to sell a product, and ads to get a message out there.

Resasaurus:

Brigitte, Azi says that he loves the "whatnow.org" commercials.  He thinks they're really funny but he's never gone to the site.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Check this out. I found it looking for the TruthOut ads:

In a painfully obvious "revelation" that only further confirms the deadly negligence of the tobacco industry, a new study published in the American Journal of Public Health reports that, rather than discouraging kids from smoking, the so-called "anti-smoking" ad campaigns produced by the legally liable Philip Morris company do not curb smoking habits and may actually increase the likelihood of young viewers lighting up that first cigarette.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

One of the things that can make funny ads effective is that when the ad comes on TV, people will actually turn up the volume instead of putting it on mute because they enjoy watching the ad, which makes it more likely they'll remember the product.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Here is the hardest of this week's LIVEbrary Quiz questions:

4) Matching. How many ads can you legally cram into a 60-minute broadcast television program intended for children under the age of 12? Match the letter of the location to the limit on TV advertising. Note: The same ad limit may apply to more than one country.

A. United States
B. Canada
C. Belgium
D. Greece
E. Province of Quebec

1. Zero -- no advertising allowed.
2. Limited to 5 minutes.
3. Limited to 8 minutes.
4. Limited to 12 minutes.
5. No limit -- 60 minutes possible.

Resasaurus:

A. Meg (2) Azi (3) B. Meg () Azi (2) C. n/a D.n/a E. Meg and Azi (1) (because they were paying attention earlier)

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

This was a bit of a trick question.

Answers: A-4, B-3, C-1, D-1, E-1

So three out of five countries in the quiz do not allow advertising to younger children. That one surprised me.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Because here in North America, the big companies that lobby for unrestricted advertising are so strong, it's hard for us to imagine that many other countries do place significant restrictions on who can advertise where.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Azi and Meg, do you have any T-shirts or sweatshirts that sport a brand logo?

Resasaurus:

Meg has a Girl Scouts sweatshirt and a Baby Phat tee shirt.  Azi has a Sonic the Hedgehog shirt and a Full Metal Alchemist shirt (both games)

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

When I talk to kids who are proud of how many brand logos they're wearing at one time, I jokingly ask them if they're receiving checks from the companies, and if not, why are they performing the services of a walking billboard for free!  In fact, because we purchase the shirts to begin with, it's almost as if we're paying the advertiser for the privilege of promoting their product. On the other hand, sometimes we just really like the shirt!

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Good point, Shari.

Resasaurus:

Meg didn't realize at the time that Baby Phat was a brand, she just liked the kitty.  Azi says he likes the games shirts because they tell other kids something about what he likes.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

I recently bought a new backpack and put a patch over the company logo on the pack because I don't want to be anyone's brand puppet!

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

I rip off the brand logo on the back of my jeans for the same reason.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Azi, do you only wear shirts of the games that you think are really good?

Resasaurus:

He says he'll only wear shirts of games he really likes.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

So your product endorsement is at least thoughtful, Azi!

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Okay, one last but funny LIVEbrary Quiz question:

5. Multiple Choice. What is the definition of the term "nag factor" in advertising? Select the best answer from the list below.
A. Likelihood that a horse race will be won by a long shot.
B. Attempt by an advertiser to get you to bug your parents to buy something.
C. The average number of times you must be asked before cleaning your room.
D. A new kind of perfume that's supposed to repel parents and teachers.

Resasaurus:

Azi and Meg say B.  Meg was wondering if kids had less influence over what their parents buy, if advertisers would still advertise kid stuff, so Mom was explaining the "guilt factor" in children's product advertising.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Azi and Meg are correct and Meg gets extra credit for the good question!

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Meg, in fact, advertisers didn't use to target kids at all, but when they discovered how much influence kids have, they started advertising even products like mini vans and family vacations to kids, hoping to inspire the nag factor.

Resasaurus:

One thing that saves us from a lot of branding is that the sports we enjoy aren't ones that have big TV presence.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Meg and Azi, do you think that Sarah Jessica Parker and other celebrities wear Gap clothing when they're not appearing in the Gap ads?

Resasaurus:

Azi thinks probably not.

Resasaurus:

Meg asks, "What's Gap clothing?" :P

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Bravo, Meg!

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Yay, Meg!

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

That's the difference between celebrity endorsements and the kind that Azi provides.  His is authentic, and theirs is bought and paid for.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Well said, Shari.

GUEST AUTHOR Shari Graydon:

Resa, Meg, and Azi: Thanks so much.  It's been great chatting with you again!

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

I'm afraid it's time to conclude today's LIVEbrary chat.

Resasaurus:

Thanks once again for having us.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Shari, thank you for an educational romp through modern marketing!

Resasaurus:

We learned a lot.  Bye, everyone.

MODERATOR Steve O'Keefe:

Hope to see you all next week for the final chat in our first season here at the Annick LIVEbrary.

Annick LIVEbrary-ChatKeeper:

PLEASE JOIN US the same time next week (2-3 pm ET, Thursday, November 15) for the final LIVEbrary of the Fall season. We'll be discussing "The Future of Advertising" with Claire Carmichael, author of the novel, Leaving Simplicity, a near-future look at a school where the advertising has gone berserk. Don't miss it!